Depth-mine firing-gear and safety device therefor.



J. HUBER.

DEPTH MINE Emma GEAR AND sAEETY DEvlcE THEREFOH.

.APPLICATION FILED FEB-12.1918. I i 1 ,314,662, .Patented Sept. 2,1919.

E 2/ Zyl Z2 zo V25( 162. AMMUNITION AND L EXPLOSIVE DEVICES vuulb!! UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

J' AMES HUBER, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO VICKERS LIMITED, OF WESTMINSTER, LONDON, ENGLAND.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 2, 1919.

Appication led February 12, 1918. Serial No. 216.816.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, JAMES HUBER, a citizen of Switzerland, residing in the city of Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Depth-Wine Firing-Gears and Safety Devices Therefor; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to a tiring gear for a depth mine, and is in the nature of an improvement on the gear described and claimed in my co-pending application, Serial No. 200.776 liled November 7, 1917. 1/

The primary object of the invention resides in the production of a firing gear which will operate to explode the charge after the mine has reached a predetermined depth.

A further object of the invention resides in the production of mechanism by means of which the depth at which the firing gear operates may be varied at will. A

Vith these and other objects in view, such as will appear as my description progresses, my invention comprises the combination and arrangement of parts set forth in and falling within the scope of the appended claims.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a sectional view of the firing gear showing the same in place on a p0rtion of the mine;

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the gear removed from the mine and looking at right angles to Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section illustrating the relative positions of the diaphragms which prevent the access of the water to the detonator operating carrier until the mine has reached the desired depth, and

Fig. 4 is a fragmental sectional view of a modification.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, I have illustrated a portion of a mine, 1, which has a chamber 2 having a screw-threaded opening 3 at the upper side thereof. Beneath this chamber 2 is located the ignition charge 4 and surrounding this charge and the chamber 2 is the main charge 5.

In order that the ignition charge 4 and the main charge 5 may be exploded when the mine reaches a predetermined depth, I have provided the firing gear which consists of a body portion or casting 6, which is adapted to have screw-threaded engagement with the opening 3 in the top of the mine. Depending from this body portion 6 is a guide tube 7 which is attached to the body portion by screw threads 8, 0r by any other suitable means. The body portion 6 is provided with a central bore 9, which is in axial alinement with the guide tube 7 and opens through the upper end of the body portion 6 at 10 and into the guide tube.

A piston 11 is located within the guide tube 7 and carries a detonator 12 which is adapted to be fired by contact with the firing pin 13, which tiring pin is located within a detonator receiver 14. This receiver is normally closed by a pair of slides 15, and the guide tube 7 is provided with elongated openings 16, similar in construction to that described and claimed in the above mentioned co-pending application. The detonator carrier 11 is normally held in a predetermined position within the guide tube 7 by a supporting element 17, which element is of such size and such material that it may easily be sheared by'pressure exerted against the piston. For instance, a soft wire will serve admirably. v

Located above the detonator carrier 11, within the guide tube 7 is a piston 18, which is supported in spaced relation to the detonator carrier 11 by means of a spring 19', which spring is normally under no, or in any event little compression.

The bore 9 in the body or casting 6 is intersected by a transverse chamber 20 in which is located a rotary barrel 21 on one end of which is a stem 22 which extends through the adjacent wall of the body p0rtion 6. Each end of this barrel is surrounded by a suitable washer 23, and the barrel is held in place in the body portion 6 by a nut 24. Extending through the barrel transversely to its aXis are openings 25, 26 and 27, which openings are adapted to selectively aline with the bore 9 in the body portion 6. Located within each ofthese openings 25 is a diaphragm 28, which 1s made of suitable frangible material, and which is held in place within the opening by any suitable means, such as a sleeve 29 and a washer 30, as disclosed in Fig. 3. These diaphragms, it will be noted from inspection of Fig. 3, are of various diameters, so that the eEective pressure necessary to rupture the diaphragms will vary. Thus, when the diaphragm of the greatest diameter resists the passa-ge of the water through the opening 25, it will resist with a predetermlned pressure, but when the opening in the dlaphragm 27 is turned so as to aline with the bore 9, the necessary pressure will be increased and so also when the diaphragm in the opening` 26 is alined with the bore 9. On the stem 22 which protrudes beyond the face of the body portion 6, is an indicator 31, which coperates with a dial 32 on the face of the body portion to indicate which diaphragm is in alinement with the bore 9 and also the depth at which the water pressure will rupture the particular diaphragm.

The upper end of the bore 9 is protected by a perforated cap 33 and a wire screen 34. I/Vhen the mine is thrown overboard from a ship, it will sink until the pressure of the water is suiicient to rupture the particular diaphragm which is in alinement with the bore 9. Vhen this diaphragm is ruptured the water will be permitted to enter the guide tube 7 through the said bore 9, and upon entering this tube will force the piston 1S downwardly against the resistance of the spring 19. The forcing of this piston downwardly by the water will place the spring 19 under compression, and when this spring reaches a certain point of compression the supporting element or wire 17 will be sheared, so that the detonator 12 and its carrier 11 will be quickly and forcibly projected downwardly, so that the detonator will contact with the firing pin 13 and eX- plode the mine. Of course, it is to be understood that the supporting wire or element 17 being sheared and no longer operative to support the detonator carrier, the spring 19 is free to act and inasmuch as the water is acting on the piston 18 in opposition to spring, the projection of the detonator results.

In Fig. l of the drawing I have illustrated a modiication of my invention, wherein the same type of detonator carrier 11 is used. This carrier supports the detonator 12 and is operable in the guide tube 7. The detonator carrier 11 is likewise supported by an element 17, such as has been previously described.

A piston 18 is located above the detonator carrier 1l in spaced relation thereto, and is supported in this relation by means of elements 35, which are of similar form and material to the supporting element 17 and are adapted to be sheared upon the downward movement of the piston. It is to be noted however, in connection with these supporting elements 35 that they are of such a character that they will merely support the piston 18 when the latter is not subjected to any considerable amount of pressure, and are as a matter of fact, of considerably softer material than thesupporting element- 17 or in the alternative, of considerably less diameter.

Thus, when the water enters the guide tube 7 and contacts with the piston 18, the supporting elements 35 will immediately be sheared, so that the piston 18 will move rapidly toward the detonator carrier 11 and will compress the medium between the piston and the carrier until it reaches such a point of compression that the supporting element 17 will be sheared, at which time the detonator will be projected downwardly in the manner similar to that previously described. It is here observed that the space between the pist-on 18 and the detonator 11 need not be filled with air, but may, as a matter of fact be lled with any compressible medium.

TvVhat I claim is:

l. In a depth mine, a firing pin, a water pressure operated detonator located remote therefrom, and means for preventing the access of water to the detonator actuating mechanism which includes a barrel having a plurality of frangible diaphragms which are capable of being ruptured at different water pressures, said barrel being adjustable to selectively bring the diaphragms into operative position.

2. In a depth mine, a firing pin, a detonator, a carrier therefor, means for positively supporting the carrier in spaced relation to the firing pin, a compressible medium for rendering said supporting means inoperative and for projecting the detonator quickly against the firing pin, and water operated means for compressing said medium, the first mentioned means being rendered inoperative by the pressure developed in said compressible medium.

3. In a depth mine, a firing pin, a water pressure operated detonator located remote therefrom, and means for preventing the application of the water pressure to the detonator, including a barrel having a plurality of frangible diaphragms of various diameters located therein, said barrel being capable of being revolved to bring any one of said diaphragms into an operative position.

ma. AMMUNITION AND i Search @am v EXPLOSIVE DEVICES t. In a depth mine, a firing pin, a detopenings adapted to aline With the opening onator located remote therefrom, a detonain said casting, and diaphragme Which are tor carrier, a piston located in spaced relacapable of resisting predetermined and va- 10 tion to the carrier, a compressihle medium rious Water pressures, located in the open- 5 located between the piston and carrier, a ings in said barrel.

casting having an opening in alinement with In testimony whereof I affix my signature. said piston, a barrel having a plurality of JAMES HUBER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

